To be extradited to Australia to face trial, the Crown has to show there was a comparable offence in New Zealand law that Radhi had broken and that the offence was punishable by more than one year in prison.

At the time, the penalty for people smuggling was worded such that it had a maximum three month prison term, or $5000 fine for each person smuggled.

Radhi's defence has argued the ''multiplier'' aspect only applied to the fine part of the penalty and could not be used for the imprisonment part.

The Crown needs to convince Justice Edwin Wylie the multiplier can apply to imprisonment so the prison term can be multiplied and get over the one-year threshold for extradition.

Radhi's lawyer Roger Chambers has also argued the New Zealand law was not comparable as it was stated in terms of helping people "arrive" in New Zealand.

In the SIEV X no-one arrived or even entered extra-territorial waters, he said.

The Crown has called in extradition expert Christine Gordon SC, who has argued the legislation at the time was focused on the intent of those involved and it did not matter that it occurred outside New Zealand.

Australian police alleged three men were responsible for organising the people smuggling operation - Khaleed Daoed, Abu Quassey and Maythem Radhi.

The ''non-citizens'', who were of Middle Eastern origin, travelled to Indonesia to make the journey between July and October 2001.

On October 18 2001, passengers were transferred to a beach in Sumatra where they were ferried by larger boats onto the SIEV X.

"The SIEV X was so overcrowded that 20 passengers refused to board it and after several hours into the journey, 23 passengers who were concerned about the vessel's safety, negotiated with a fishing boat to take them back to Indonesia,'' the Crown alleges.

The remaining passengers and crew struck rough weather on October 19 and sank.

Most of the passengers drowned but about 45 were rescued by fishing vessels and returned to Indonesia.

Australian police alleged that Radhi was present during negotiations about price and terms of travel and that he received payments from some passengers, controlled their movements and accommodation, accompanied some of them to Sumatra and assisted some to board the SIEV X.